Goodbye, For Good
by claritysmiles
Summary: They won't let her forget him, neither will he. All memories of him have faded, except for that one picture that holds so many lies. Leah/Sam. Angst.


**Disclaimer**: **I do not own Twilight or any of its characters. **

**A.N: A little something I couldn't get out of my mind. To Sapphire Moon readers, don't kill me. I'm working on the next chapter. I just couldn't get this out of my head...XD. Not related to Sapphire Moon at all. 'Kay! LOVE YA! Inspired by 30 Seconds to Mars "Was It A Dream"  
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_Was it a dream?Was it a dream?  
Is this the only evidence that proves it  
A photograph of you and I  
Your reflection I've erased  
Like a thousand burned out yesterdays  
Believe me when I say goodbye forever  
Is for good - 30 Seconds to Mars  
_

It's been about five years.

Five _long_ years since that fateful day.

Five years and yet everyone acts as if it's only been five months. I can't walk anywhere without everyone around me giving me pitiful looks and whispering _'Poor dear,'_ or _'She used to be so happy.' _I pretend to ignore their stares and low voices, but it's sometimes impossible.

I've _been_ over him for a long while, and yet it's like people refused to believe that it was impossible to shy away completely from the 'prodigal son.' Apparently, once you went Sam Uley, you never went back. But I proved them wrong, no matter how much they refused to accept the idea. Sam was in my past, and I had moved on. I didn't need him anymore and I didn't want him either. Why couldn't they see that?

I sighed as I walked away (once again) from all of the drama, the pitiful stares, and the hushed whispers. I returned home moment later and went into my room.

The past. Sometimes things are better left in the past, but, apparently to them, the past, present, and future are filled with Sam the moment you associate yourself with him. He was once my past, and at one point of life, I still wanted him to be my present. It took me a long while to figure out that he was not my future.

I looked through my bookcase and found a photo album that I hadn't looked at since before my father's death. Funny enough, that was someone else I had left in the past, but for different reasons. Memories of my father pained me even to this day. Those memories would take me to a time when I was once happy and carefree. A time when the Quileute legends were just that; _legends_. A time when I didn't explode into a giant grey _dog. _Don't get me wrong, I've come to embrace what I am and I couldn't really imagine not being a wolf, but all the sacrifices that were made to become one were much to steep.

I flipped through the seemingly endless pages of the album and passed various memories captured and forever frozen. Birthdays, family get-togethers, holidays, and vacations filled the Polaroid's that my mother was so fond of. According to her, they were much simpler and more efficient than digital or disposable cameras. I just thought it was because _her_ mother preferred them and it was a way of remembering her past.

I stumbled upon a picture that I was sure wasn't there before. I had looked through this album countless number of times and I was absolutely certain that it wasn't there before today. I took it out of the plastic wrap and held the Polaroid by the corners as I stared at this long forgotten memory.

Port Angeles Fair- 04/23/2002

My mother always scribbled down the date and event on the Polaroid so we would always remember the importance of the picture. I had to laugh at my mother's silliness. If that day was so important, wouldn't we have remembered it out of our own free will? Would the date and every little thing that the day entitled be etched into our minds?

As I gazed at the photograph, the memories all flooded back to me. Sam and I were heading into Port Angeles for the fair that had recently arrived. Seth, Jacob, Embry and Quil wanted to go too but they didn't have a ride. They begged Sam and I to take them and we had reluctantly agreed. Mom told me to take her camera to at least snap _one_ shot of us laughing and having fun together.

It was around two in the afternoon when we got there. The boys left in one direction and Sam and I went in another. Every so often we would run into each other and they were either eating, trying to win a prize, or skipping the long lines of the big rides. Sam and I were quite the opposites from the boys. We wandered around the fair, hands intertwined, looking like _'Quite a lovely couple,'_ as one woman described us in passing. We stopped at a dunk booth, the ones with those annoying clowns, and Sam tried his luck. He missed the first two shots, but he hit the target on the third.

"For you, my lovely Queen." I rolled my eyes at him playfully and hugged the prize he had won for me. It was a simple little brown teddy bear with dark brown eyes that reminded me of Sam's. The bear wore a small tiara that sparkled brightly in the sunlight.

"I don't like Queens." I told him.

He looked at me amusedly. "Why not? Queens are powerful women, and have the ultimate riches of the land."

"I could care less about that. Queens are boring."

"How so?"

"All they do is sit around and order people around. No fun. Princesses, on the other hand, do so much more. Take any princess story. They get into some dire problem that has them worried out of their wits. They have to fight to stay alive and use some quick thinking to get out of possible death situations. Most of them have to be saved, which is the only thing I would change, but for the most part they have adventure and discover new things."

He chuckled and hugged me tightly. "Ah, well maybe I'm going to have to call you 'Princess' from now on."

"Nah, most princesses are spoiled brats anyways." We both laughed and enjoyed the rest of our day. We met up with the boys a few hours later and I reminded Seth that mom wanted us to take a picture to commemorate the day.

"Excuse me, but could you take our picture?" I asked a nearby security.

"Of course miss. Gather closely kids."

"1...2...3...Cheese!" We smiled are biggest smiles and thanked the man for the picture and headed back home.

A good memory trapped in a forgotten past. That's what this picture was to me. I carefully examined the picture, scrutinizing every single pixel.

The sun was setting and it filled the sky with a mixture of reds, pinks, and oranges. Children were walking in the background with smiles on their faces and cotton candy stuck to every visible part of their bodies. Couples walked hand in hand with their arms filled with huge teddy bears and fuzzy heart-shaped stuffed toys. The rides and booths began to light up in a myriad of colors. I could almost remember the sounds and smells that filled my senses.

I looked at the main protagonists of this once well choreographed play. The boys wore brilliant masks. Overjoyed at the wonderful day that they had. So young and innocent looking, while a mischievous glint lingered in their eyes. Lanky bodies tangled together in a mess of arms and legs. The 'perfect couple' embracing each other lovingly. The girl was once so lovely. She had long, silky, black hair tied up in a perfect pony tail and she wore a bright blue tank top with low-cut jeans. The boy as happy as the younger ones that surrounded him. He wore a big toothy smile that could light up any room, a white polo and a pair of dark washed jeans. Their performance deserved a standing ovation.

I sighed. We all wore our masks so well. If you looked behind them, you'd see wolves in sheep's clothing, _literally_. It was all a dream to think that we could all live in that blissful peace forever. Three out of the six wolves in the picture had imprinted. The girl had ended up becoming a bitter harpy and the boy had forcibly fallen in love with the girl's cousin. One of the younger boys was the true leader, and the younger boys and the girl, left the boy's pack to start their own. The boy was devastated at losing half of his pack and begged for the girl rejoin them, but the girl's cousin quickly made the boy forget everything about them and her.

I only realized I was crying when I saw a tear land on Sam's face. I felt relieved somewhat at the coincidental gesture that my tears gave me. Sam's face looked blurred out and almost as if was erased. Now the picture only held the faces of the brothers I had become closer with throughout the years. Sam wasn't a part of my life anymore, even if he was married to Emily. The pack was my life now, _Jacob's pack_. They boys in this picture were everything to me. They kept me grounded and helped me get through each and everyday of my immortal life.

Sam? He's forever trapped in this photograph as a memory of the past. I let him go, even if he still refuses to let _me_ go. He comes over every now and then to remind me and Seth that we're family and we should still have some type of relationship. I would simply roll my eyes at him and walk out of the house to Jacob's, ignoring the his calls for me to come back. _'Now you want me to come back to you? Too late.' _

I put the album away, but kept staring at the picture. It was strange. The longer I stared at the picture, the more faded Sam began to look in it. I began to see the faces of the boys morph into the faces of the men they were now. My face went through many stages in the photograph as well: happiness, depression, anger, bitterness, acceptance, and finally back to happy. At part of me was lost at every stage, and I was only now regaining who I once was.

"Hello? Is anyone home?" The familiar voice boomed throughout the entire house. I could have easily snuck out through my window without none the wiser, but something was telling me to stay.

"I'm up here, Sam!" I called out to him. I heard his footsteps coming closer and he hesitated momentarily before knocking on my door. "Come in."

"Hey, Leah. Um, how are you?"

"I'm fine. Did you need something?"

"No, nothing. Just thought I'd come and hang out with you guys." He looked a bit downtrodden, but I pushed the thought to the back of my head. It was just my imagination. It had to be.

"So…how's everything?" Of course what he actually meant was, _'Is your pack finally going to join mine again?'_ Typical.

"Everything's fine. Never been _happier_. How's everything with you? How's Emily?" The moment I mentioned Emily, his eyes lit up with happiness, but he quickly looked apologetically at me. I raised an eyebrow at his strange behavior and his expression quickly to one of confusion. He wasn't expecting me to become sullen at the look of love and adoration towards my cousin, was he?

"Umm, s-she's fine. So, what have you been up to?" Awkward could not begin to describe what I felt at the moment. We used to be so comfortable around each other, _used to_ being the key phrase. I thought back to the picture of our once happy life. Things could never be the same with us.

I sighed. "Sam, just…stop. Why? Why do you insist on coming here _all the time_? It's not going to change anything. You're not going to get me to convince the pack to go back to you. You're not going to convince me to talk to Emily. And, _most importantly_, you're not going to convince me or Seth to include _you_ in our lives."

"Lee-lee…"

"Would you stop calling me that?! God, it's been five years! _Five years_!" I was exasperated.

"I know."

"Then why do you insist on keeping a hold on me?" I whispered softly. I looked up at him and his eyes held so much pain, as if I killed his puppy or something.

"Because I can't lose you, Leah. I-I _won't _lose you."

"I was never yours to lose, Sam. You're just too weak to let me go." I gave him a sad smile and walked up to him. I pried his clenched hands open and gently place the Polaroid in his hands, squeezed his wrist, and walked away.

"Goodbye, Sam." I called out to him.

Let them talk. Let them say that I'm still not over him. Let them give me pitiful glances wherever I go. I knew the truth, and that was all that mattered.

I walked to the woods to phase and heard the mournful cry of a familiar wolf that once owned my heart. I phased and ran, letting the painful howl fade in the wind. I had said my last goodbye to Samuel Uley.

_For good._

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**A.N: Leah = Love**


End file.
